SAP S/4HANA revolutionizes business analytics by integrating transactional and analytical processing within a single system. One of the key enablers of this innovation is the use of Analytical Views — specialized data models designed to provide real-time insights into business operations without the need for separate data warehouses.
This article explores the concept of analytical views in SAP S/4HANA, their creation, management, and best practices to harness their power effectively for enterprise reporting and decision-making.
Analytical Views in SAP S/4HANA are predefined or custom-built models that expose business data in a format optimized for analysis. These views combine transactional data, master data, and calculated measures into meaningful representations to facilitate quick and accurate reporting.
Unlike traditional SAP systems, where analytics were performed in separate BW or BI systems, S/4HANA enables embedded analytics by leveraging the HANA in-memory database, allowing real-time data access and analysis directly on the transactional system.
SAP Standard Analytical CDS Views
Delivered by SAP, these Core Data Services (CDS) views provide ready-to-use analytical data models for various business areas like Finance, Procurement, and Sales.
Custom Analytical CDS Views
Created by customers or consultants to address unique business requirements, enabling tailored analytics and KPIs.
Calculation Views
Built using SAP HANA Studio or SAP Web IDE, calculation views provide flexible modeling capabilities, combining different data sources, complex calculations, and custom logic.
Begin by identifying the key business questions and reporting needs. Define the relevant data sources, measures, dimensions, and filters needed to answer these questions.
@Analytics.dataCategory and @OData.publish, to expose it to reporting tools like SAP Fiori Elements and SAP Analytics Cloud.Leverage HANA’s calculation capabilities by implementing measures, calculated columns, and filters in the CDS view to enable dynamic and performant analytics.
Activate the CDS view in the system, and validate the data accuracy and performance by running test queries using tools like SAP Fiori Analytical Apps or SAP HANA Studio.
Analytical views in SAP S/4HANA can be seamlessly consumed by:
Creating and managing analytical views in SAP S/4HANA is a cornerstone of the embedded analytics strategy, enabling businesses to harness the full power of their data in real time. By mastering CDS view creation, performance tuning, and integration with modern reporting tools, SAP professionals can deliver valuable insights that drive smarter, faster business decisions.
Understanding this capability is essential for any SAP S/4HANA consultant or professional aiming to maximize the value of their SAP investment.